Galan (Earth-616)
Real Name: Galactus Nicknames: Devourer of Worlds, Ravager of Planets, Big G, Master, Space God Former Aliases: None known Other Current Aliases: Ashta Status Occupation: Planet Devourer, Third Force of the Universe (balance between Eternity and Death), Nullifying Abraxas' Influence on the Multiverse, Third Face of the Living Tribunal (representing Equity) Legal Status: Not applicable Identity: Known throughout the universe Marital Status: Marital status unknown Group Affiliation: Heralds of Galactus Base of Operations: Worldship (aka Taa II); though he is generally mobile throughout the universe via his spherical starship in search of suitable planets to consume. Origin Place of Birth: Planet Taa Known Relatives: Eternity, Death, Infinity, Oblivion First Appearance: Fantastic Four #48 (1966) Origin: Super Villain Classics #1 (1983) History Galactus is the sole survivor of the universe that existed prior to the creation of the current universe. Originally Galactus was a humanoid named Galan, who was born on the planet Taa, a paradise-like world whose civilization is said to have been the most advanced of any of the known universe of that time. However, this universe was in its final stages of collapse. Originally, like all universes in the Marvel Comics continuum, this universe had been a "Cosmic Egg" — a primal sphere of disorganized, dense, compact primordial matter. The sphere underwent a "Big Bang," an explosion that hurled the matter outwards, where much of it eventually condensed into stars and planets. This universe expanded in size for billions of years, and then contracted, undergoing a "crunch" over the following billions of years. All of the matter of that universe was plunging towards a central point, where it was collapsing into a new "Cosmic Egg." Taa's civilization was one of the last still in existence. Lethal radiation caused by the "Big Crunch" this universe was experiencing was wiping out all life across the universe. Galan, a space explorer, was dispatched to travel through the cosmos to find a means of saving Taa, but he found none. The radiation eventually killed off all but a tiny fraction of the population of Taa. Knowing their deaths were inevitable, Galan proposed to the remaining survivors that they die gloriously by piloting one of their starships directly into the heart of the "Cosmic Egg." As the starship containing Galan and his fellow survivors approached the focal point of the Big Crunch, the heat and radiation killed all the passengers except Galan, who strangely found himself filled with new energy. At the moment Galan's universe met its end, the Phoenix Force amassed the positive emotions of all living beings in the cosmos to preserve them from eternal damnation, enabling the Sentience of the Universe — the previous universe's equivilant to Eternity — to merge with Galan. Within the "Cosmic Egg" the Sentience of the Universe revealed itself to Galan and informed him that though they both would die in the final moments of the universe, they would both survive through an heir born into the next universe. The Sentience of the Universe merged itself with the mortal Galan and thus Galactus, the devourer of worlds, was conceived. Eventually the "Cosmic Egg" underwent another "Big Bang," thus creating the current universe. Eternity and Death, the ethereal embodiments of the new universe, were created in this "Big Bang," and the newborn Galactus was simultaneously hurled outward in his recreated starship. The nascent Galactus drifted in his starship for eons as life began to come into existence in the universe, including the races that would give rise to the Elders of the Universe. Eventually the nascent Galactus's starship was sighted by Ecce of the Watcher race, an ancient species who possess vast psionic and energy manipulation powers who had undertaken to observe the events of the universe. Ecce drew the starship down to his planet to study it. There he learned that the being within it had power beyond comprehension and would eventually have to consume entire worlds to satiate his hunger for energy. Realizing the danger the nascent Galactus posed to the cosmos, this Watcher considered destroying the entity (who was still vulnerable because he was in a metamorphic state — not yet harnessing his total cosmic force) but instead decided to abide by the Watchers' oath of non-interference, and let the nascent Galactus depart in his starship. Although the Watcher race has come to understand that Galactus is a necessary and integral component of the cosmos, Ecce has expressed guilt over his descision those billions of years ago and feels partially responsible for the destruction Galactus has caused since. The nascent Galactus employed his vast power and created a suit of armor to help him regulate his raging energies. He then transformed the starship into a kind of incubation chamber, where Galactus spent millenia evolving into his current form. Finally, the incubation ship drifted into orbit around the inhabited planet Archeopia. The Archeopians themselves did not disturb the strange ship, but years later a marauding space fleet, nearing Archeopia and thinking Galactus's ship to be a weapon, attacked it. Galactus, his incubation finished, emerged, destroyed the fleet, and then, hungering for energy, consumed the life energies of the planet Archeopia. A small fleet of Archeopian ships managed to escape, but all life on the planet was destroyed. (The Archeopian race would later be fully exterminated by the living planet Ego). Over the following millennia Galactus built himself an immense home, the world-ship he calls Taa II, which engulfs the Archeopian solar system as a tribute to both his homeworld and Archeopia, the first planet he ever consumed. For several billion years Galactus consumed only planets uninhabited by sentient lifeforms, Archeopia being the only esception, and centuries passed between his "feedings". However, as ages passed, the intervals between feedings decreased considerably in length, and Galactus found himself needing to consume worlds inhabited by sentient races if he could find no other worlds possessing the energy he needs in time to sustain himself. Galactus has succeeded in suppressing his sympathy for intelligent beings who are much like the part of himself that was Galan, and, realizing himself to be a higher kind of being than they, is willing to destroy their lives to continue his own. Moreover, he is aware that he is meant to one day give back to the universe infinitely more than he has ever taken from it. At one point Galactus threatened to destroy the planet Zenn-La, home of a civilized race. One of that world's inhabitants, Norrin Radd, persuaded Galactus to spare the planet by volunteering to become his "herald" and search out uninhabited worlds for him to consume. Galactus agreed, and transformed Norrin Radd into the Silver Surfer. Eventually, however, Galactus grew determined to consume the energy-rich planet Earth. The Surfer rebelled as a result, and Reed Richards of the Fantastic Four thwarted Galactus by threatening to use an alien device called the Ultimate Nullifier on him, a weapon that could lay waste to the universe and kill even Galactus. Galactus was forced to vow to spare Earth, and he punished the Surfer for his betrayal by erecting an energy barrier that prevented the Surfer from leaving Earth. Galactus then reclaimed the Nullifier and departed the Earth-system. Eventually freeing himself from his pledge to Richards by defeating the nearly omnipotent Sphinx (who was empowered by the Secrets of the Universe), Galactus returned several times to Earth to consume it, but was always narrowly thwarted. Meanwhile, he consumed numerous inhabited worlds throughout the known universe to sate his hunger, and was feared as a menace to all known star faring races. Galactus also took on a succession of new heralds. During his last attempt to devour Earth, Galactus had gone so long without "feeding" that his energies were the lowest they had ever been and he was near death; thus a large number of Earth's superhuman defenders actually succeeded in defeating him in battle. Galactus lay dying succumbing to his own hunger, but Reed Richards saved his life with the help of Thor's mystic hammer Mjolnir. The grateful Galactus pledged his friendship to Richards and sincerely gave his word never to attack Earth again. Galactus has steadfastly abided by this oath ever since. During this visit to Earth Galactus recruited his latest herald, Nova. Galactus continues to prey upon other worlds, and recently he destroyed the Skrull throneworld, thereby plunging the Skrull Empire into chaos. There is an account of a far distant alternate future, in which man no longer exists on Earth, and Galactus, therefore no longer feeling bound by his oath, consumes it at last. At some point afterward, Galactus was targeted by the alien organization called the Elders of the Universe, who believed his death would trigger a new Big Bang and recreate reality. In this new reality, the Elders believed they would become a race a Galacti, each with infinite cosmic power with which to endlessly pursue their special interests with. His former herald, Silver Surfer, the Fantastic Four, Franklin Richards, and his herald Nova managed to upset the Elders plans. Galactus was believed to have developed romantic feelings for his herald Nova. When Nova finally rebelled as his herald, Galactus created another in the alien Morg, who ultimately murdered Nova on his own volition. Morg in turn was defeated by the collection of his heralds, leaving Galactus alone again. More recently, Galactus' appetite became such that he would only devour the life forces of sentient beings and leave the planets on which they lived intact. He began to consume more and more frequently, because unlike the life essences of the planets he normally feeds on the life forces of mortal beings offer him no sustenance; thus his addiction left him perpetually starving, weakened and demented. He created a new herald, Red Shift, to help him succeed in devouring all of the sentient life forces he came upon. He approached Earth once more, and had to be driven off by a large contingent of Earth's superheroes, and Red Shift was defeated by the Silver Surfer. Finally, the Silver Surfer agreed once more to become Galactus' herald and to search for planets with sentient life to consume. Almost immediately, the Silver Surfer led Galactus to the homeworld of the Shi'ar Empire, perhaps the most technologically advanced in the known universe, in hopes they would have the forces to repulse the weakened planet devourer. The Shi'ar quickly joined with other races and several of Earth's superheroes to battle Galactus. During the conflict, the Silver Surfer managed to turn Galactus' own energy-siphoning machines on Galactus himself, fatally weakening him. Galactus died, warning that the madness which had consumed him was a precursor to another greater horror. As he passed away, Galactus was converted to energy by his own planet-destroying machines, revealing his true form, that of a sentient star. As Reed Richards noted, his energy would radiate forever outward, so he could never again reform. Galactus' "death" allowed the being known as Abraxas, the metaphysical embodiment of destruction and the antithesis of Eternity, to emerge from his imprisonment. He soon began to cut a swath of terror through various alternate realities, including the murder of parallel versions of Galactus. He used the decapitated head of one alternate reality Galactus to target and home in on the prime reality Earth and to plant a mole in his version of the Herald known as Nova. On Earth, Abraxas attacked Uatu the Watcher, left him comatose, and stole half of his signature medallion. Abraxas taunted the Fantastic Four with the inevitability of his coming, enticing the team to search for the Ultimate Nullifer, the clues to the location of which were scattered among alternate realities. Ultimately, the Four found the Nullifer when Abraxas suddenly appeared and stole it from them. Abraxas called forth an army of Novas to attack Earth, and the Fantastic Four held no hope of defeating him. Instead, Franklin Richards, the son of the Four members Mister Fantastic and the Invisible Woman, combined his Celestial-level cosmic powers with those of his sister Valeria and returned Galactus to his natural state and thus restored balance to Eternity, at the cost of forever burning out his powers. Galactus easily wrenched the Nullifer from Abraxas, but due to interference from the army of Novas the Nullifier fell to Mister Fantastic, who used the weapon to destroy the multiverse. The result served to re-create the multiverse in which Abraxas had never escaped, and since all that was had ended, all that is was realigned, it allowed Mister Fantastic to survive along with all those who died in Abraxas' reign of terror. Characteristics Height: 28'9" (variable) Weight: 18.2 tons (variable) Eyes: Inapplicable Hair: Inapplicable Unusual Features: Galactus' base height and weight will diminish when he is greatly in need of life-giving energy. Galactus has the ability to increase his size and mass at will, the extent of which is unknown (he once grew to a stature so great he eclipsed a sun). Additionally, Galactus' base size will increase if he "overeats", in an alternate future where Galactus was consuming the universe he was as large as a galaxy and growing. Although Galactus is usually represented in humanoid form, each sentient being perceives him having a form resembling his own. Hence, humans see Galactus as an enormous armor-clad humanoid, while an amoeba-like species, for example, would perceive Galactus in an enormous amoeba-like form. Although as Galan, Galactus was indeed a humanoid, his true current form is unknown. Although it is not entirely clear why beings from different sentient races perceive Galactus differently; this unique trait is likely due to the mortal races of the universe lacking the sufficient level of consciousness and sensory perception to grasp his partially abstract nature; thus the sentient being subconsciously projects an appearance similar to it's own onto Galactus in an attempt to comprehend what they behold. Powers Strength Level: Incalculable; when sated Galactus posseses a level of strength beyond the human ability to measure or quantify. Additionally, Galactus can use the Power Cosmic to further enhance his strength to virtually infinite levels. Known Powers: Galactus posseses the immeasurable Power Cosmic and is one of the most powerful beings in the universe. As such, Galactus is able to employ the limitless cosmic energy within him to produce virtually any effect he desires. Some of his more commonly employed abilities are the molecular restructuring, conversion or transmutation of matter, the projection of energy with incalculable concussive force or heat, the teleportation of objects — even entire galaxies — across space or even time, the erection of invincible energy screens and force fields, the creation of interdimensional and intradimensional portals and wormholes, virtually unlimited telepathic and telekinetic ability, and cosmic awareness on a universal scale. Galactus has even shown the ability to resurrect the dead, manipulate mortal souls and remake dead worlds — including their populations — in every detail. Even his heralds, whom he has endowed with a minuscule fraction of his awesome power, are able to manipulate matter and energy in ways far beyond human comprehension. Weakness: Cosmic Hunger — Galactus requires unknown energies obtainable only from a certain type of planets in order to sustain his life. The suitable type of planet need not be one where life is present, but it must have the potential to support life. When recently sated Galactus is effectively omnipotent; however, the longer he goes without feeding the more his strength, power, and cosmic awareness wanes. Indeed, just one month after consuming a suitable planet his power will have already been reduced exponentially, although in such a hungered state his powers are still far beyond mortal comprehension. In recent times Galactus has been known to go without feeding for several months at a time bringing him to the brink of death and reducing his power to such a degree he actually becomes vulnerable to attacks from superhuman teams such as the Shi'Ar Imperial Guard, Avengers and the Fantastic Four. When the universe was still young, Galactus could go without feeding for a century before his hunger weakened him to a significant degree, why the intervals between his feedings has decreased over the millenia is unknown. Known Abilities: Galactus likely possesses the universe's most advanced intellect. Reed Richards has admitted an inability to fully comprehend even the most rudimentary devices found within Galactus' Worldship. The Worldship itself is a solar system-sized construct that is said to surpass any natural world in beauty and splendor yet within it housed knowledge (within its computer, see Korvac) and technology far beyond human comprehension. Miscellaneous Equipment: Galactus often employs his Elemental Converter when devouring planets to help him in the conversion of matter into energy. Although he does not require this device to devour planets and will forego its use in certain situations, it makes the conversion of energies more efficient. Galactus also wears a full-body suit of armor constructed from an unknown material of his own design that helps him to regulate and control his personal energy. If he were to remove the armor for an extended period, his vast cosmic energies could run rampant and potentially give him the appearance of a star. Transportation: Although Galactus is capable of space travel via his own power, he disdains the needless expenditure of power and prefers to travel in starships of his own design. Though Galactus has many different starships in his personal fleet his preferred long range vessel is his sphere-shaped starship (over a mile in diameter) which is capable of trans-light speeds and interdimensional travel. Galactus has even on rare occasions been shown to travel in his solar system-sized Worldship, Taa II. Weapons: Galactus often employs a robot called the Punisher, which possesses vast superhuman strength and speed, to battle adversaries whose power levels do not warrant his direct attention. Galactus also keeps in his possesion a weapon called the Ultimate Nullifier. This weapon has the ability to destroy any target the weilder can envision. In the hands of Galactus, due to his nearly omniscient nature and cosmic awareness, the Ultimate Nullifier is capable of destroying entire universes and even entire timelines. It was revealed in the Abraxas story arc that the Ultimate Nullifier is actually an aspect of Galactus himself. Trivia * The Galactus of the Mangaverse (Earth-2301) was a vast eye-like parasite that literally fed on planets through enormous city-sized tendrils. Where its tendrils touched the surface of a world, "spores" would be thrown off, and these spores took the form of monsters such as Fin Fang Foom. The Mangaverse equivalents of the Inhumans lived on Galactus' surface, as did a race of Lava Men and a Skrull enclave led by a Super Skrull. As Earth's heroes fought the spores, Galactus was finally drained of life by that reality's incarnation of Captain Marvel. * An entity named Gah Lak Tus threatened the Ultimate Universe in 2005-2006. It seeded planets with energy siphons that bore a visual resemblance to the helmet of the Marvel Universe Galactus. Related Articles * External Links * References * Marvel Directory ---- Category:Characters Category:Male Characters Category:Living Characters Category:Bad Characters Category:Cosmic Beings Category:Black Eyes Category:No Hair Category:Silver Age Category:Heralds of Galactus